Harcourt Heritage Centre Chairman and longtime community member, George Milford, has shared a statement following Friday’s devastating fire.
‘Two days after the catastrophic fires, we still do not know of the extent of the losses of the homes and outbuildings in the Harcourt district. We have been told that more than thirty homes have been razed, this is tragic loss to the residents and of many precious memories.
We were present at the Castlemaine Town Hall meeting on Saturday afternoon. It was only fitting that there was prolonged applause for the first responders; a genuine heartfelt thanks for the courageous and effective firefighters and volunteers.
The Town Hall meeting enabled the locals to regroup after what has been “trauma on steroids” which occurred in Harcourt on Friday afternoon.
It was good to see people meet up with their friends and neighbours, to hug, to swap experiences and to check up on each other.
The good news is that Harcourt is alive, peopled by folk that have vision and determination, optimistic one and all, people who in recent times have built the Victorian Miniature Railway, the mountain bike park, a new preschool, who put together the annual Applefest and numerous twilight “Gather” events.
Although there has been much property lost, the precious community assets are all intact, namely; children’s playground, leisure centre, heritage centre, primary school, kindergarten, recreation reserve, bowling club, swimming pool, Uniting Church, community house, fire station, petrol station, post office, James Park and Stanley Park. None of these were damaged in the fire.
The Coolstore, unfortunately was burnt to the ground. It will be a big task to rebuild but the Coolstore was burnt down previously in 2001 and even with some delays, it was rebuilt in nine months ready for the next season’s harvest.
The great thing about Harcourt is that all the skilled trades are available within the shire. A whole range of tradies is just a stone’s throw away. There should be no delays due to travel time or remoteness.
It will be a big task to rebuild over thirty homes but we understand that insurance companies are already contacting their Harcourt policy holders to facilitate assessment of what will be a big swag of claims.
Remember that the Federal Government encourages insurers to cut the red tape after natural disasters. Remember also, that the sites of the homes that were destroyed already have connections for electricity, water and sewerage, so much of the preliminary work is already in place.
Plans are afoot for new housing developments to the south and north of the Harcourt township, so we can be confident that the town will not just bounce back but it will grow as more and more people move into one of the best situated communities in Central Victoria.
Harcourt survived the millennial drought, it survived a loss of thirty-eight homes when the Calder Freeway upgrade works took place, and each time grew back bigger and stronger.
So, despite the blackened paddocks, and the tangled ruins of many dwellings, Harcourt will once again be known as the core of a thriving, prosperous and forward- looking community.’ – George Milford.